The regular season champion Miami Hurricanes will open the ACC Tournament on Friday, March 15 at noon, facing the winner of Thursday’s No. 8 Boston College vs. No. 9 Georgia Tech first round matchup.

The Series vs. Boston College

Miami is 17-24 all-time against Boston College, with the series dating back to the 1962-63 campaign. The Canes are 9-11 against the Eagles at home, 0-2 at neutral sites and 8-11 on the road. Miami has won the last six matchups.

The Series vs. Georgia Tech

Miami is 10-7 all-time against Georgia Tech, with the series dating back to the 1952-53 campaign. The Canes are 5-3 against the Yellow Jackets at home and 5-4 on the road. Miami has won nine of the last 12 meetings after starting the series 1-4.

The Broadcasts

Catch the game on ESPN2 with Dave O’Brien, Doris Burke and Allison Williams on the call. Also check out the game on the ACC Network with Tim Brant and Mike Gminski. Florida affiliates for the game are: Jacksonville - FOX 30; Orlando, Daytona Beach, Melbourne - My 65; Panama City - This Panama City (13.2); Tallahassee, Thomasville - FOX 49; West Palm Beach, Ft. Pierce - My 15. Listen to the ACC Tournament games on 560 WQAM Radio with Joe Zagacki (play-by-play) and Josh Darrow (analyst).

The Coach

Head coach Jim Larrañaga is in his 29th season as a head coach and second at Miami. He has a 514-353 overall record and is 44-19 in his second season at Miami.

With a 15-3 ACC record, Miami earned its first outright regular season conference championship in program history in Coach L’’s second year with the team. Of current league coaches, Roy Williams also won the ACC regular season in his second year in the ACC, taking over UNC in 2003-04, and winning in 2004-05.

With a 13-3 mark in the league in 1999-2000, Miami tied Syracuse for the BIG EAST regular season title, the Canes’ only other conference championship in school history. In 1999-2000, Leonard Hamilton led Miami to a 23-11 mark and an appearance in the NCAA tournament.

24-Win Season for Miami

With the win over Clemson, Miami has tied the school record for most wins in a season, which was 24 in 2001-02 under Perry Clark.

With a 24-6 record, Miami has posted its 14th 20-win season, and Coach Larrañaga’s second-straight with the Hurricanes. UM’s best record was the 24-8 season in 2001-02 under Perry Clark, when the Canes were 10-6 in the BIG EAST and went to the NCAA tournament. Last year the Canes were 20-13 overall, 9-7 in the ACC and played in the NIT. A complete list of 20-win seasons is on page 4 of the notes.

Double-Digit Road Victories for the Canes

According to research by the AP, Miami (1998-99, 2012-13) is now the third Power 6 school in the last 15 years to have at least two seasons of double-digit road victories, joining Duke (98-99, 99-00, 2000-01 and 05-06) and Stanford (1998-99, 99-00, 2000-01 and 03-04). No other BCS school in that span has done it more than once.

Only eight Power 6 teams in the last 15 years have more road wins in a season than Miami’s 10 so far in 2012-13.

Most road wins, last 15 years, Power 6 schools

1. North Carolina, 2007-08, 13-0

2. Mississippi State, 2003-04, 12-0

3. Arizona, 2002-03, 11-1

Connecticut, 1998-99, 11-0

Kansas, 2001-02, 11-1

Michigan State, 1998-99, 11-3

Stanford, 1998-99, 11-3

Stanford, 2000-01, 11-0

9. 15 teams have won 10, including Miami this season

Four 20+ Point Wins in ACC Play

According to @STATS_CBK: The @CanesHoops team has 4 conference wins this year by at least 20 pts. In its previous 8 seasons in the ACC, they had 5 such wins combined. This season Miami has defeated Duke (+27), North Carolina (+26), Florida State (+24) and Boston College (+22) at home. The Canes also downed Virginia Tech by 18.

Canes Continue Top 10 Ranking

At No. 9/10 the Canes have now been ranked in the top 10 for six-straight weeks, topping out at No. 2/2 on Feb. 18, 2013. Prior to this season, Miami had never been ranked in the top 10 more than two-straight weeks (1999 and 1960).

UM was ranked in the top 25 for 12 straight weeks in 2001-02, starting at No. 24/23 on Dec. 24, 2001, peaking at No. 12/11 Feb. 4, 2002, and ending No. 21/21 on March 10, 2002.

In 2008-09, Miami was No. 17/16 in the preseason poll and held a top 25 ranking four weeks, until dropping out on Dec. 8, 2008. In 1998-99, Miami was in the top 25 for nine-straight weeks from Jan. 18, 1999 to the final poll.

On Jan. 28, Miami made a historic climb in the national polls jumping 11 spots in the AP Poll and entering the USA TODAY poll for the first time since December 2008, posting a No. 14/15 ranking. According to the Associated Press, Miami’s climb in the AP Poll was tied for the second-largest since the poll expanded to 25 teams in 1989-90. Arizona holds the record for the biggest rise, jumping 15 spots in November 1995. Miami’s late-January rise is the second-latest behind UConn’s +12 jump in March of 2011 after winning the BIG EAST Tournament.

Miami was No. 2/2 on Feb. 18, marking the school’s highest rank in both the AP and USA TODAY. Miami’s highest AP rank was No. 8, on March 1, 1960 and highest USA TODAY rank was No. 10 on March 1, 1999.

Coach L in the Top 10

Miami coach Jim Larrañaga is the 10th coach in the last 10 years to lead two top-10 programs, according to research by the AP. Miami was No. 2 on Feb. 18, and following the 2006 season, George Mason was listed as the No. 8 team in the nation in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll on March 28.

Shane Larkin has been named a Bob Cousy Award finalist, listing the sophomore as one of the top five point guards in the nation. Larkin joins ACC peer Lorenzo Brown (NC State) and 2012-13 opponent Keith Appling (Michigan State) on the list.

Larkin was added to the Naismith watch list in late February, placing him in the top 30 players in the country and is on the John R. Wooden Award Ballot, made up of 15 student-athletes who are eligible for college basketball’s most prestigious honor.

Five Canes on All-Conference Lists

Jim Larrañaga was selected as the ACC Coach of the Year and Durand Scott earned the ACC’s Defensive Player of the Year, according to the ASCMA, both firsts in program history. Shane Larkin is a first team player, Kenny Kadji is on the second team and Scott is honorable mention All-ACC. Larkin’s first-team honor is Miami’s first since Jack McClinton (2008 & 09). Scott and Larkin were both picked for the ACC Defensive team as well. Raphael Akpejiori, who is majoring in mechanical engineering, is on the All-ACC Academic Team.